The present invention relates to a golf ball with improved carrying performance, controllability, feeling characteristic, and durability against hitting of the golf ball.
In recent years, soft golf balls for giving soft feeling of hitting the golf balls to golf players have been increasingly required. With respect to such soft golf balls, however, if a core deformed by 4.0 mm or more under a load of 980 N is used, there have often arisen an inconvenience that the durability against continuous hitting of the golf ball has become weak. Such golf balls have also been required to be improved in terms of carrying performance and controllability.
An object of the present invention is to provide a golf ball having a high resilience enough to enhance a carrying performance, a good controllability, a desirable soft feeling of hitting, and an excellent durability against hitting.
To achieve the above object, the present inventors have earnestly examined a golf ball having a solid core deformed by an amount of 4.0 to 6.0 mm under a load of 980 N, and found that a golf ball capable of improving a durability against continuous hitting, improving a resilience upon impact by imparting a desirable energy efficiency while preventing excessive deformation of the ball upon hitting, allowing a golf player at the level of relatively low head speed (40 m/sec or less) to ensure a sufficient carry of the ball, enhancing a controllability upon puttering or short-approach, and ensuring a very soft feeling of hitting the ball for players, can be obtained by specifying a JIS-C hardness of a cover provided to cover a solid core of the golf ball in a range of 75 to 95 and controlling a center hardness and a surface hardness of the core and a cover hardness in a specific range. On the basis of the above knowledge, the present invention has been accomplished.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a golf ball including a solid core and a cover, wherein a deformed amount of the solid core, measured by applying a load of 980 N thereto, is in a range of 4.0 to 6.0 mm; a JIS-C hardness of the cover is in a range of 75 to 95; a JIS-C hardness (Sh) of a surface of the core and a JIS-C hardness (Ch) of a center portion of the core satisfy a relationship of 1.55xc3x97Chxe2x88x9216xe2x89xa6Shxe2x89xa61.55xc3x97Chxe2x88x9210; a JIS-C hardness (Vh) of the cover and a JIS-C hardness (Sh) of the surface of the core satisfy a relationship of 0.9xc3x97Vhxe2x88x9270xe2x89xa6Vhxe2x88x92Shxe2x89xa60.9xc3x97Vhxe2x88x9250; and the hardnesses of the center portion of the core, the surface of the core, and the cover become higher in this order.
The JIS-C hardness of the center portion of the core is preferably in a range of 40 to 65.
The JIS-C hardness of the surface of the core is preferably in a range of 55 to 80.
The cover is preferably formed from a base resin containing an inorganic filler in an amount of 2 parts by weight on the basis of 100 parts by weight of the base resin.
A thickness of the cover is preferably in a range of 1.0 to 2.3 mm.